The Global Volcanism Program has no Bulletin Reports available for Kharimkotan.

Basic Data

Volcano Number

Last Known Eruption

Elevation

LatitudeLongitude

290300

1933 CE

1145 m / 3756 ft

49.12°N
154.508°E

Volcano Types

Stratovolcano
Lava dome

Rock Types

Major
Andesite / Basaltic Andesite
Dacite
Basalt / Picro-Basalt

Tectonic Setting

Subduction zoneIntermediate crust (15-25 km)

Population

Within 5 kmWithin 10 kmWithin 30 kmWithin 100 km

2
2
4
22

Geological Summary

The 8 x 12 km island of Kharimkotan (also spelled Harimkotan) in the northern Kuriles consists of a stratovolcano cut by two breached depressions on the east and NW sides. These horseshoe-shaped craters were formed by slope failure, which produced debris-avalanche deposits that form large broad peninsulas on the east and NW coasts. Evidence of additional slope failures followed by plinian eruptions are found in sea cliffs of the island. Historical explosive eruptions have occurred since the early 18th century. A central cone, Severgin, was largely destroyed during the 1933 eruption, one of the largest in the Kuril Islands during historical time. Impact of a debris avalanche into the sea from the collapse of Severgin produced a tsunami that swept the island's coast and reached Onekotan and Paramushir Islands, killing two people. A large lava dome emplaced during the 1933 eruption now fills the head of the eastern crater.

References

The following references have all been used during the compilation of data for this volcano, it is not a comprehensive bibliography.

This compilation of synonyms and subsidiary features may not be comprehensive. Features are organized into four major categories: Cones, Craters, Domes, and Thermal Features. Synonyms of features appear indented below the primary name. In some cases additional feature type, elevation, or location details are provided.

Synonyms

Harimkotan | Araumakutan | Harumukotan | Karimkotan | Severgina

Cones

Feature Name

Feature Type

Elevation

Latitude

Longitude

Severgin

Cone

Photo Gallery

The east side of the 8 x 12 km island of Kharimkotan (also spelled Harimkotan) is cut by a large horseshoe-shaped caldera that was formed when the summit of the volcano collapsed in 1933. The dark-colored lava dome in the center of the photo was emplaced inside the breached depression at the end of the 1933 eruption. This and another horseshoe-shaped crater on the NW side of the island were formed by slope failure, which produced debris-avalanche deposits that form large broad peninsulas on the east and NW coasts.

The lava dome in the center of the photo was emplaced at the end of a major eruption that began on January 8, 1933 and destroyed the summit of Severgin volcano on Kharimkotan (Harimkotan) volcano, leaving a 1.7-km-wide breached crater open to the east. A debris avalanche resulting from the collapse of the summit reached the sea, extending the shoreline 1 km and producing a tsunami that swept the island and reached Onekotan and Paramushir Islands, causing two fatalities. Additional explosions were reported on Janaury 30 and April 14.

WOVOdat is a database of volcanic unrest; instrumentally and visually recorded changes in seismicity, ground deformation, gas emission, and other parameters from their normal baselines. It is sponsored by the World Organization of Volcano Observatories (WOVO) and presently hosted at the Earth Observatory of Singapore.

EarthChem develops and maintains databases, software, and services that support the preservation, discovery, access and analysis of geochemical data, and facilitate their integration with the broad array of other available earth science parameters. EarthChem is operated by a joint team of disciplinary scientists, data scientists, data managers and information technology developers who are part of the NSF-funded data facility Integrated Earth Data Applications (IEDA). IEDA is a collaborative effort of EarthChem and the Marine Geoscience Data System (MGDS).

Using infrared satellite Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data, scientists at the Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, University of Hawai'i, developed an automated system called MODVOLC to map thermal hot-spots in near real time. For each MODIS image, the algorithm automatically scans each 1 km pixel within it to check for high-temperature hot-spots. When one is found the date, time, location, and intensity are recorded. MODIS looks at every square km of the Earth every 48 hours, once during the day and once during the night, and the presence of two MODIS sensors in space allows at least four hot-spot observations every two days. Each day updated global maps are compiled to display the locations of all hot spots detected in the previous 24 hours. There is a drop-down list with volcano names which allow users to 'zoom-in' and examine the distribution of hot-spots at a variety of spatial scales.

Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity (MIROVA) is a near real time volcanic hot-spot detection system based on the analysis of MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) data. In particular, MIROVA uses the Middle InfraRed Radiation (MIR), measured over target volcanoes, in order to detect, locate and measure the heat radiation sourced from volcanic activity.